1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a vending machine having an elevator for transporting products to a vend port. A transparent window is provided in the face of the machine such that the consumer can see the dispensing operation.
2. Description of the Background Art
Conventionally vending machines have a closed front such that the internal operation of the machine is not visible to the consumer. Conventional vending machines which do have transparent faces which drop articles into a bin in the lower front portion of the machine. The consumer can then reach into the bin and withdraw the products after viewing the vend operation. However, for certain products, such a vending operation is unacceptable. For example, if beverages, and in particular, carbonated beverages, were to be dispensed, this dropping operation would unsatisfactorily shake-up the product.
Other vending machines are known wherein an internal elevator lowers articles to a discharge port. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,108,333 discloses a vending machine with an interior elevator for lowering selected articles from a storage shelf to a vend port. The operation is visible through a front window of the vending machine. This arrangement, however, is primarily used for food products, such as sandwiches, salads, lunch platters and dessert items. These items will slide onto the elevator from their storage shelf. Because the items generally have a low center of gravity, they will not tip over. However, when dispensing certain items such as beverage containers, the center of gravity is higher than that contemplated for items dispensed in this U.S. Pat. No. 4,108,333. Thus, if beverage bottles, cans or juice boxes were attempted to be dispensed from this known vending machine, they would likely tip over. Moreover, no provision of horizontal movement of the elevators is provided in this known machine and as such, a rather large and awkward vend port is required.
Accordingly, a need in the art exists for a simple and effective transparent front vending machine that avoids the drawbacks of the prior art machines. This vending machine should increase consumer interest in the vending process and the vended product in order to thereby increase sales.